Orange County Water Park Accidents Attorney

Orange County is home to some of the state’s most popular water parks. Each year, millions of California locals and tourists traveled to spend time at Knott’s Soak City, Great Wolf Lodge, Water Ventures, and other area parks. Unfortunately, water parks can be dangerous if rides are not maintained properly. If you or someone you know has been injured at an Orange County water park, you may be entitled to compensation. Call the Law Offices of John Rapillo to learn about your rights as an accident victim.

For over 35 years, the John has been dedicated to helping accident victims recover meaningful compensation for their injuries. We understand how important a financial recovery can be after an accident and will fight to make sure that you get the money you deserve. Call us today to schedule a free consultation. We will review your case, explain your legal options, and address any questions you may have.

Causes of Water Park Accidents

In 2015, an estimated 85 million people visited water parks across the country. That same year, more than 4,200 water park guests were rushed to an emergency room to treat water park-related injuries. Thousands of other water park guests sustained injuries that, while serious, could be treated on-site.

Water parks can be fun, but they can also be dangerous. Parks can be equipped with a variety of entertaining features, ranging from splashing pools to lazy river to water slides. When these exciting attractions are misused or lack important safety features, accidents and injuries can happen.

Water Park Accident Injuries

Water park accidents have the potential to cause injuries that can change a person’s life forever. At the Law Offices of John Rapillo, our attorneys are prepared to help you and your family recover damages for any water park injury that you may suffer, including:

Broken bones

Lacerations

Concussion

Brain injury

Spinal cord injury

Chest injury

Neurological impairment

Lung and breathing disorders caused by drowning

Catastrophic injury, and

Death.

Children At Greatest Risk of Fatal Water Park Accidents

Children, who can frequently be found enjoying water parks in Orange County, are at an increased risk of suffering fatal injuries. Young children often lack the ability to swim and can potentially drown in even the shallowest pool of water. According to the CDC, drowning is the leading cause of death among children between the ages of 1 and 4. In fact, 70 percent of all drowning deaths involve children under the age of 5.

The water park where your child was injured had a responsibility to make sure that the premises were safe for children. This responsibility required the park to take extra precautions to ensure that the attractions, when used properly, would not put any guests (including children) in harm’s way. If the water park breached this duty in some way (e.g., no lifeguards on duty, no protective fencing surrounding pools), they can be held financially responsible for your child’s death.

Call the Law Offices of John Rapillo to find out how we can help you hold a negligent water park responsible for the death of your child.

Liability for Water Park Accidents

Who can be held financially responsible for your water park accident-related injuries? In California, anyone who contributes to the cause of an accident or injury can be liable. If more than one person is at fault, each can be held responsible for a portion of a victim’s damages.

Water Park

In California, water parks are classified as amusement parks. As a result, they are also considered to be common carriers. Common carriers, under California state law, have a heightened duty of care to passengers and guests. Water parks must “do all that human care, vigilance, and foresight reasonably can do under the circumstances to avoid harm” to guests and passengers. While a park cannot guarantee a visitor’s safety, it must do everything in its power to minimize the chances of an accident or injury.

When a water park breaches its duty of care to a guest, it can be held financially responsible for injuries. A water park may breach its duty of care if it fails to:

Inspect water slides, pools, and other attractions for defects

Hire and/or train its employees properly

Warn guests of hazards or dangers

Clean up spills and slippery surfaces, or

Address reported safety issues.

Other Guests

When you visit a water park, you are probably not alone. In fact, you are probably surrounded by hundreds of other people. When visiting a park, all guests have an obligation to follow posted rules and act in a way that does not put others in harm’s way. When another guest engages in dangerous behavior, and you are injured as a result, that person may be responsible for damages.

Parents

Children must be properly supervised at all times at a water park. When children are unsupervised, the chances of suffering a serious or fatal injury increase significantly. If a child is injured at a water park, a parent may be responsible if they were negligent in the supervision of that child.

What happens if both a parent and a water park are mutually responsible for a child’s injuries? In California, the parents would not be barred from recovering compensation. Instead, their ability to get damages from the water park would be reduced by their own degree of fault. If the parent is deemed to be 50 percent at-fault, they would only be able to recover 50 percent of their damages from the park.

Water Slide Manufacturers

Sometimes a water park may not know that its water slides and other water attractions contain dangerous defects. When a water slide is defective, the company that is responsible for designing, manufacturing, and/or selling that product can be held strictly liable for resulting injuries. If the water park was aware of the defect, but failed to take steps to fix the situation, they may also be on the hook for damages.

Compensation for Orange County Water Park Injuries

In California, water park accident victims may be entitled to both compensatory and non-economic damages.

Compensatory Damages: Awarded to compensate victims for verifiable present and future financial costs related to their accident. Examples can include

Medical bills

Medication

Rehabilitation

Disability, and

Lost earnings.

Non-Economic Damages: Awarded to compensate victims for hard-to-value injuries that are caused by a traumatic accident. Examples can include:

Pain and suffering

Anxiety

Depression

Scarring

Disfigurement, and

Loss of enjoyment of life.

Statute of Limitations for Water Park Injury Cases

If you or someone in your family has suffered a water park injury you have a limited amount of time to file a claim for damages. The statute of limitations for bodily injury claims is two years from the date of an accident. Failing to file your claim in this time frame will prevent you from recovering the money you need.

You may be able to extend the period in which you can file a claim if there is a reasonable delay in the discovery of your accident-related injury. In these cases, you will have one year from the date you discover the injury to file a claim.

Orange County Water Park Accident Attorneys

Have you been injured at an Orange County water park? Contact the Law Offices of John Rapillo to learn about how we can help you get the money you need after an accident. Our Orange County personal injury attorneys have over 35 years of experience successfully handling complex personal injury matters. We understand how devastating a water park accident can be and will fight to make sure that you are fairly compensated for your injuries. Call us today to request a free consultation and learn more.

Mr. Rapillo does not pass your case off to other attorneys or legal assistants. When you hire him, you have direct access to him, you get his undivided attention, and he’s committed to working hard for you with the full support of his staff and legal resources.

The Law Offices of John Rapillo are located in Newport Beach and Huntington Beach. Mr. Rapillo handles cases throughout Southern California, including Orange, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. If you are unable to travel to one of Mr. Rapillo’s offices, a consultation can be arranged at a location near you.

Speak to an Orange County Personal Injury Attorney Now

Learn what Orange County personal injury lawyer John Rapillo can do for you. Call him to schedule an appointment or just to chat about your case. He can be reached easily at our toll-free number 800-814-4771, or you can email john@rapillolaw.com.